The Spanish government, trade unions and business associations are debating whether to increase the minimum wage in Spain in 2026 by up to €56 more per month in 14 payments.
The Committee of Experts advising the Spanish government on raising the minimum interprofessional wage has recommended to the Ministry of Labour that they increase the so-called SMI next year by between 3.1 percent and 4.7 percent.
This would mean a maximum increase of €56 gross per month.
The proposed salary bump up would raise the minimum wage to €1,240 gross per month, paid in 14 instalments as is common in Spain.
READ ALSO: Why do workers in Spain get 14 pay cheques a year and who is entitled?
Advertisement
For 12-month pay cheques, this proposed minimum wage would be €1,446.66 gross per month.
Currently, the minimum wage in Spain stands at €1,184 gross per month in 14 instalments, €1,381 in 12 payments.
The key question lies in whether or not the increase remains tax-exempt.
This has been a contentious matter in 2025 as this year’s salary increase meant minimum wagers were no longer exempt from paying income tax (IRPF) in the eyes of the Spanish taxman.
In the end, the Labour Ministry managed to reach a deal with the Treasury which ensured that for 2025 at least they’d be exempt from paying IRPF.
Advertisement
If 2026’s increase is tax-exempt, experts propose a 3.1 percent increase, almost €37 more than the current rate, bringing the gross monthly salary to €1,221 (paid in 14 instalments).
If it becomes taxable, the increase would be €55.60, reaching €1,240.
This contrasts with the proposal from employers and unions.
The proposal from the experts at the Ministry of Labour contrasts with the one presented jointly by leading Spanish trade unions CC.OO and UGT and with the one made by the employers’ associations CEOE and Cepyme.
The business groups have proposed an increase in the national minimum wage of up to 1.5 percent by 2026, which would bring it to €1,202 gross, paid in 14 monthly instalments. In this case, it would be subject to taxation. Spain’s Labour Ministry has referred to this suggested raise as a “bad joke”.
For their part, the unions have proposed an increase of this minimum income of 7.5 percent, up to €1,273 gross per month for 14 payments, also with mandatory income taxation.
For 2025, there was a 4.4 percent increase that set Spain’s minimum wage at €1,184 gross per month (14 months).
Spanish Labour Minister Yolanda Díaz has been successfully pushing for Spain’s minimum wage to be more in line with the EU average over the past years.
In 2018, the last year the centre-right pro-business PP were in power in Spain, el salario mínimo was only €736 gross per month.
Mid-scale salaries haven’t kept up with the rapid rise of the minimum wage in Spain, and recent data reveals that over the past five years the most frequent annual earnings in Spain are just €450 above the legal minimum.
In other words, salaries close to the minimum wage are now the most common in Spain.
